12 The QUEE NS Courier • DECEMBER 18, 2014 FOR Breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Compiled by Cristabelle Tumola police beat Call Now & End Your Tax Nightmare! • Owe the IRS more than $10,000? • Being Audited? • Unfi led Tax Returns? • Wage & Bank Levies? 104th Precinct Ridgewood, Glendale, Middle Village and Maspeth Two Queens Chase banks robbed within six hours: cops A pair of Chase Bank branches in neighboring Ridgewood and Middle Village were robbed on the same day, police said. The first Chase branch, at 70-01 Forest Ave. in Ridgewood, was hit at about 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 9, cops said. After entering the bank, the suspect passed a note demanding money, and he took $2,617 in cash before fleeing. Another Chase location, at 74-07 Eliot Ave. in Middle Village, was robbed just before 5 p.m. the same day, according to police. The suspect, armed with a gun, entered the bank and passed a note demanding cash from the teller. The teller then handed $8,825 in cash over to the suspect. Authorities describe the suspect in the Ridgewood robbery as a black man, 25 to 30 years old, 5 feet 7 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a medium complexion and medium build. He was wearing a black bubble coat and a gray hoodie. The suspect in the Middle Village robbery is described as a black man, 25 to 30 years old, 5 feet 9 inches to 6 feet tall, with a medium complexion and medium build. He was wearing a gray ski cap, dark sunglasses, a gray coat and a multicolored scarf. Police are still investigating whether the two robberies are connected. Anyone with information in regards to this grand larceny is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). Cement & Brick Work Old World Craftsmanship Cement & Co-Author of the best selling book “Breaking the Tax Code” Salvatore P. Candela, EA, ATA, ABA Enrolled Agent - Tax Advisor (T) 877-TAX-1040 (F) 718-894-4476 [email protected] www.thetaxadvocategroup.com Brick Work CALL ARTIE Basement Water Proofing Specialist Serving Queens for 35 Years Serving Queens for 35 Years For more information contact Artie DiBiase Mason Contractor 718.767.0072 Licensed #808097 and Insured Licensed #808097 and Insured Old World Craftsmanship CALL ARTIE Basement Water Proofing Specialist Pavers and Exposed Aggregate Concrete For more information contact Artie DiBiase Mason Contractor 718.767.0072 Rookie NYPD cop accused of cashing $7K in stolen checks A rookie cop risked his future in the NYPD and promise of a pension to pocket nearly $7,000 in stolen checks. The 24-year-old has now lost his job and is facing up to seven years in prison, according to the Queens district attorney’s office. “As a police officer, the defendant was hired to uphold the law. In this case, it is alleged that he threw away a promising career in law enforcement by knowingly cashing two checks that had been stolen and retaining the proceeds,” District Attorney Richard Brown said. “The defendant will now be held accountable for his alleged actions.” Gerardo Laera, of Queens, is accused of stealing the money while he was working part time for a Flushing paint store while he was also employed as an NYPD officer. The business, Clearview Paint Supply, located in the basement of a commercial building on Francis Lewis Boulevard, shared space in the basement and a common hallway with a real estate agency, Douglaston Development Corporation, at the time of the theft, according to the district attorney. In the fall of this year, on two separate occasions, Laera stole checks from the agency that were made out to “cash,” Brown said. One was in the amount of $2,000 and the second was for $5,000. He was allegedly caught on video surveillance using an ATM to deposit the first check into his account. He also presented his NYPD shield and New York State driver’s license at a check cashing business before leaving with $4,900 from the second check. The check cashing manager, who made a copy of the documents during the transaction, tried to deposit the check, but it was returned to his bank unpaid. Laera was arraigned on Dec. 12 in Queens Criminal Court on charges of third- and fourth-degree grand larceny and second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, according to court records. A member of the NYPD since January 2013, Laera was assigned to the 81st Precinct in Brooklyn. He submitted his resignation on Friday. Jamaica man indicted for selling weapons, drugs, stolen vehicles through Craigslist A Jamaica man has been indicted for selling $500,000 in stolen vehicles and auto parts as well as weapons and drugs through Craigslist, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said. The accused, Conrad Hall, 43, “allegedly used the Craigslist website to initially sell stolen auto parts before his criminal activity brazenly escalated and he began to sell luxury automobiles and motorcycles that had been stolen, as well as weapons — including a 9mm Glock and a .357 Magnum — and approximately five pounds of marijuana,” Brown said. Authorities believe that Hall also scammed insurance companies with the help of the owners of the stolen vehicles. Hall was allegedly working with three others — Denise Mboumi from Brooklyn, Shane Carter, of Queens, and Eboni Davis, a Bronx resident — who reported their cars as being stolen to their insurance companies and received cash payouts when they had actually sold their cars through Hall. All three were charged with thirddegree insurance fraud and first-degree falsifying business records. Hall was indicted along with Jermaine Edwards of Queens for selling a stolen 2010 Honda CRV, and with Roger Haye, of Long Island, and Queens resident Carlton Young for selling marijuana. Hall was arraigned on Dec. 10 on a total of seven indictments charging him with criminal possession of stolen property, insurance fraud, criminal sale of a firearm, criminal possession of marijuana, criminal sale of marijuana and other charges, according to prosecutors. If convicted of all charges, he could be sentenced to more than 200 years in prison. Photos courtesy of NYPD The suspect on the top is wanted in a Middle Village bank robbery at a Chase location on Dec. 9, and the suspect on the bottom is sought in a Chase bank robbery on the same day in Ridgewood. ‘Shorty 140’ graffiti tagger arrested: report They got Shorty. A graffiti artist famous among local authorities for leaving his “Shorty 140” tag on Queens overpasses has been arrested, according to a published report. Alberto R. Rodriguez, 33, who has lived in College Point and Long Island at various times, has been charged with criminal mischief and the felony crime of making graffiti, according to Newsday. Police eventually nabbed Rodriguez on Dec. 3 after picking him up in a DWI case and charged him with the graffiti crimes, the paper reported. They were able to catch him through surveillance and a database that logs graffiti tags throughout the city. One of the “Shorty 140” tags that police collected, according to am New York, included the words “RIP John Gotti” along the Cross Island Parkway. Rodriguez has long been a thorn in the side of police and community leaders, angry over his ever-present graffiti on highway overpasses. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton once fumed that seeing Shorty 140’s tag on graffiti while traveling to and from the Hamptons on weekends drove him out of his mind, according to a report in Newsday. In addition to continuing his graffiti spree, Rodriguez has also developed a cult following as a rapper in recent years. Photo via Laser Burners/Flickr Creative Commons One of Shorty 140’s alleged tags that he’s left in New York City through the years.
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